What Bill Owens Did for Jesus Apodaca

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In a new book, political journalist Helen Thorpe writes that former Colorado Governor Bill Owens, a conservative Republican, was sympathetic toward Jesus Apodaca, a young honors student who made headlines when he was refused in-state tuition at the University of Colorado at Denver because his parents had brought him to the United States illegally.
Thorpe, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper's wife, writes in "Just Like Us: The True Story of Four Mexican Girls Coming of Age in America" that despite former Congressman Tom Tancredo's efforts to have Apodaca and his family deported, Owens (pictured) instead quietly helped arrange for one of his biggest political donors to "adopt responsibility" for Apodaca's tuition.
Owens confirms the account for The Denver Post, but declines further comment or to disclose the name of the Republican businessman who helped Apodaca in 2002. Back then, Owens' initial reaction to Tancredo was to say that immigration laws had to be "respected and enforced." But within weeks, Owens says he backed a measure by former U.S. Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell, which sought to legalize Apodaca's immigration status (Campbell later withdrew it).
For more on Thorpe, pick up the October edition of 5280 to read Natasha Gardner's "The Two Lives of Helen Thorpe." On sale tomorrow.

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Johnson & Wales students, all baking and pastry arts majors, competed in the Gingerbread Takeover from December 6–8. Final judging took place on Thursday in the lobby of the Sheraton Downtown Denver hotel. All photos by Sarah Boyum

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The American Society of Interior Designers' (ASID) Colorado Chapter decorated the Governor's Residence for the holidays. Holiday tours, free and open to the public, will take place December 8-11 and December 15-18 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. All photos by Sarah Boyum